On
October 9, 2006, Valier (pronounced VA-LEER), Montana cattle rancher John
Peterson and his wife discovered that one of their Black Angus cows
had been left mutilated in a pasture, alongside a road near their
ranch. (The Peterson's later learned that a
neighboring farmer had spotted the dead cow during the previous day.
He didn't bring it to their attention, however, because a dead cow is not an unusual thing to see on
cattle ranches once in a while).

John waited a
couple of days thinking over what his next step should be. He
had a neighbor who had once lost a cow to a mutilation. In
fact, the towns of Valier, Depuyer, and Conrad have a long recorded
history of the phenomenon. But here he was looking at a $1,200 -$1,300 loss, that was not even covered by insurance.

Besides that, he was faced with having to dispose of a carcass, that for some reason the predators refused to approach, he became frustrated and reached out for his boyhood friend, and Pondera (pon-der-ray) county Sheriff Tom Kuka.

Sheriff Kuka
arrived on the scene of the mutilation on October 11, 2006, to conduct an initial
investigation into the matter. The following day, he returned to where the cow lay dead and, armed with a Geiger counter, camera, and evidence
kits, Kuka collected samples, took photographs, and recorded
measurements. He was well prepared for the task at hand.

The following photographs are bering made available to the public to encourage
a scientific dialog regarding animal mutilations occurring on the Rocky
Mountain Western Front in the state of Montana. John Rhodes and Sheriff Tom Kuka encourage anyone with additional evidence having to do with cattle mutilations in Montana, to contact the Pondera County Sheriff's Office.

Black Angus
Cow #62 was valued at over $1000, making
the mutilation a Felony
Criminal Mischief offense.

News regarding Cattle lost to these clandestine bovine surgeries gets around fast in the local farming communities of Valier and Depuyer. It was not long before the
Great Falls Tribune article appeared about John Peterson's mutilated cow, and the story hit the wires and was
re-published in the Helena Independent Record. CryptoHunter John
Rhodes and his associate visited Valier to inspect the cow, interview John Peterson, Sheriff Kuka, and other
local residents about the
incident.

It had been almost five weeks since Black Angus Cow Number 62 had been
discovered mutilated on Peterson's land near Valier. But, despite the
fact that the cow had been dead for some time, the carcass was remarkably well preserved.

On
the night of November 17th, 2006, Rhodes and John Peterson
thoroughly examined the cow at night, with a portable black light, to see if
there were any florescent geometrical marks on the corpse. No
unusual visible markings in the UV range were discovered. (UV markings have been found on some cattle in mutilation cases outside Montana).

The
following morning, Rhodes met
with Peterson and Tom
Kuka. He conducted on-camera
interviews and carried out various field tests while at the crime scene. Rhodes examined the carcass, obtained samples, and is currently
working to arrange scientific examination of the physical samples
in search of anomalous trace evidence.
Results of tests will be made public
when they have been received.

The Pondera County mutilation event
earmarked a possible return of a cyclic phenomena that has
gripped this region of America since the 1950's. Some sixty-plus years and dozens of mutilations later, the criminals who
have engaged in these costly experimentations remain
undiscovered and active.
Rumors as to the identity of these nefarious and mysterious
high-tech criminals run the gamut: Some people believe that
corporate pharmaceutical black operations groups are conducting
tests on animals. These highly trained quick interaction teams
are said to be targeting specific animals, injecting them with
undetermined substances, releasing them into the field, then
retrieving their bodies after they have been grazing for some
time.

It has also been proposed that the perpetrators of these mutilations are
using noise canceling rotor helicopters or some sort of electromagnetic propulsion
craft to abduct their animal targets. It is further theorized that the cows are transported to another location, where they undergo an operation, then are returned to their grazing pastures.

As far as the media is concerned, multated animals such as this are due to Satanic cult activity, pranksters or simply the result of predators tearing away at the animal. While
this slant completely ignores the scientific data gathered at
the classic mutilation crime scenes, it serves its purpose in providing
audiences and subscribers an "opt out" false sense of security.
(After all, what they don't know won't hurt them, right?)
Many upstanding community members across northwestern Montana,
some of whom have themselves lost
livestock to these puzzling criminal activities, are not buying the
mainstream media's smirk and chuckle sign-offs to mutilation
stories anymore. They would like to know who or what is
targeting their property and terrorizing their ranching and
farming communities.

DID YOU KNOW THAT, BEFORE HE WAS GOVERNOR OF MONTANA,
BRIAN SCHWEITZER
HAD HIS OWN CATTLE MUTILATION?

IN A NEW YORK TIMES INTERVIEW (9/17/01), HE SAID THE BRAND INSPECTOR SAID HIS MUTILATED COW WAS NOTHING MORE THAT THE VICTIM OF A LIGHTNING STIKE. BRIAN SAID THERE WAS NO LIGHTNING THAT NIGHT and that IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS DONE WITH INSTRUMENTS! HE NOT ARGUE THE BRAND INSPECTOR'S DISMISSIVE COMMENT ANY FURTHER (He has yet to take action as governor of Montana to help find funding for investigations into these myterious, ongoing felonies).

So
that leaves local law enforcement on the front lines of this
continuing horror show. Armed with crude forensic equipment and
cameras, they obtain samples for analysis, and take pictures of the
scene. Since their budgetary restraints do not allow for
forensic analysis of materials not related to human crimes, the
investigations are sometimes turned over to MT Fish, Game, and Wildlife
authorities.

Despite the fact that ranchers and farmers, people who deal with predators their
entire lives, say there is no possible way that these incisions
were made by animals, the samples provided to official Wildlife
'experts' are often returned with the official findings of
"Death By Predator." When intelligent, down-to-earth, law
enforcement officers receive these official conclusions, they
realize that their efforts have been stonewalled. While the
threat of continuing investigation into cow deaths was not
direct, the Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Game's absurd and
insulting conclusions are perceived as a proverbial
"wink-and-nod" to drop investigations.

With no official avenues left to them, law enforcement officers
are then forced to seek forensic analysis of the "mutilated"
animals in the private sector. Unfortunately, lab work,
private sector professional consultation, and forensic equipment is
too expensive for most rural law enforcement departments and
independent researchers.
In
the majority of mutilation cases, the evidence gets forwarded to
"experts" in mutilation phenomena, who may or may not have
access to equipment and research professionals, or it sits gathering dust in some
tucked away, cardboard box.

John Rhodes hopes to help effect a positive
change by generating interest in the phenomena that results in
the discovery of who or what is responsible for the destruction
of Cow #62 and other animals like her. We welcome and
appreciate all feedback from those who endeavor to further
educate themselves and others.

UPDATE

After
a necropsy (post mortem medical examination) of Cow # 62's skull was
performed by a qualified veterinarian, it was sent to a taxidermist
to be prepared for long term preservation. With permission
from the rancher, John Rhodes made the skull available for
public auction.

This
was the first classical animal mutilation evidence ever offered for
public sale!

The money raised from this unique auction was provided to rancher
John Peterson and his family.